Epson Expression Photo HD XP-15000
Improved colour printing for wide-format prints
The rear 50-sheet tray is where the wide-format action comes into play
£299.99 FROM Epson, epson.co.uk features Wide-format, wireless printing, holds up to 200 sheets
When it comes to printing photos at home, Epson has long been
a popular name. More often than not, the company offers excellent results – as long as your creative ambitions don’t stretch too far beyond a standard page size.
That’s no longer a limitation with Epson’s Expression Photo HD XP-15000, which is capable of producing vibrant, wide-format borderless prints up to A3+ in size. Handily, you can print wirelessly from mobile devices as easily as you can from your Mac, but unfortunately there’s no EcoTank support (newer Epson technology that eliminates costly ink cartridge replacements).
You can print larger, full-colour pages in about two minutes; standard document printing speeds average nine pages per minute in black and white or colour.
Our initial tests involved printing a large collage using several recent iPhone photos. Sadly, the Epson Creative Print mobile app hasn’t yet been updated to accommodate page sizes larger than A4, although it otherwise worked fine for printing from Facebook and Instagram accounts, CD/DVD disc labels, stationery, and even converting images from our photo library into colouring book pages. We wound up using a Mac app to create our collage, which took about three minutes and 40 seconds to print in full colour and at the highest quality setting.
The front tray is capable of holding up to 200 sheets, but the rear 50-sheet tray is where the wide-format action comes into play, along with projects involving card stock or exotic paper types. One unique feature is the motorised front tray, which automatically extends to hold the current paper size. The tray doesn’t retract itself once a print has been removed, but you can use the LCD display or a gentle nudge with your finger to close it manually.
Small packages
Larger paper sizes usually require having an oversized printer, but Epson has kept this model as compact as possible. Measuring 47.6x36.9x15.9cm with both trays closed, the XP-15000 is 30% smaller than its predecessor.
In terms of print quality, Epson hasn’t quite reinvented the wheel here, but colour reproduction and clarity was noticeably improved based on side-by-side comparisons with earlier models. In any case, prints were already of a higher quality than you’d get from most alternative photo printing services. All but the most discriminating professional photographers will be pleased with this investment.
The XP-15000 does tend to be louder than earlier models while in use, particularly when making wide-format prints. To combat this, Epson added a menu option called ‘quiet mode’ that can be toggled on in settings; the trade-off is that prints will take a little longer to output this way. JR Boo kwalter